


Unveiled

by WierdoWithRice



Category: Keeper of the Lost Cities Series - Shannon Messenger
Genre: Acceptance, Alternate universe after legacy, Black Swan - Freeform, Drama, F/F, F/M, M/M, The Neverseen - Freeform, idk what to put here, maybe a little romance, will add more tags later on
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-10-13
Updated: 2021-02-05
Packaged: 2021-03-07 23:20:06
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,785
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26995798
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/WierdoWithRice/pseuds/WierdoWithRice
Summary: (Takes place after Legacy, so spoiler warning!)Finley Woltzer is an elf in the lost cities who has grown up like every normal child, and would have been perfectly happy about continuing to do so. He is determined to do great things one day, create a strong reputation for himself, and become the best Tackle Bramble star the Lost Cities has ever seen.But when he discovers his true origins, his goals suddenly become harder to accomplish.The secrets of his birth have remained top secret information that only the Council and team Valiant know about. With their help, Finley is determined to prove to everyone that he is more than just a child of the enemy.
Relationships: Dex Dizznee/Biana Vacker, Fitz Vacker/Other(s), Marella Redek/Linh Song
Kudos: 5





	1. High Hopes

* _Gannon,_

 _I fully understand if you despise me after all these years..._ *

**\---Present Day---**

“I’m gonna do great things someday,”

This is the mantra that Finley has been reciting every day since he could remember. And today, he said this as he stood proud in front of his bedroom mirror. He made adjustments to his cape, where his silver family crest shone on his emerald green Foxfire cape.

Finley let out a deep breath that he had been holding all morning, and he shoved down all of this thoughts of worry; he could do this. It was his first day at the academy, and he was determined not to mess this up. _Just put on your mask of confidence, like you always do_ , Finley thought.

He exited his room and skipped down the long flight of stairs connecting his five story home. His mom and dad were at the table leaning close, discussing quietly amongst themselves. They stopped when they saw their son striding towards them, his boots clicking on the marble floor. Finley grinned at his parents, and took an exaggerated bow that his whole body animated. “Your favorite son is here for world domination!"

His mom scooted her chair back as she stood up from the table. She strode to her son, her cape billowing out in a dark blue curtain behind her. Her facial expression was relaxed, but there was a hint of sternness. “Good. Make sure to sit up straight, be good, and make us proud today,” she said in her usual business tone. She stopped in front of him, and began to comb her long fingers through his curly light brown hair, fixing nonexistent problems. He literally spent an hour on his appearance this morning! What could possibly be wrong?

“I will.” He looked up at her and gave his signature lopsided smile. He glanced past his mother to his father, with his cup of tea at the table who had yet to say anything. He looked tired this morning, with bags under his aqua colored eyes. His father offered him a small smile as he set his cup down, and stood up.

“Ah, yes, the big day. Good luck.” He rumbled. No matter how calmly he talked, his father had always commanded respect everywhere he went with his deep tone and muscular build. These characteristics made him terrifying when he was angry. But those same characteristics were perfect for his occupation- Lord Shavrow was the mentor that taught Goblin Studies at Foxfire. Ever since the elves started hiring more goblins around the elven cities, the class was added to the school by special request of the council. They believed that with the growing threat of the Neverseen in the Lost Cities, the security measures were necessary. With this class, it was Shavrows’ job to help strengthen the connection between Goblins and prodigies. Finley could name no one who knew more about weapons than his father, and he became proud every time the thought crossed his mind. If he was going to do great things one day, he would start by joining his class. And it would give him an excuse to spend more time with his father. Because as hard as Finley tried, his father did not seem to be interested in bonding as much in return, but Finley never showed signs of ungratefulness.

“There we have it…” His mother furrowed one brow in concentration as she made one last adjustment to Finley’s hair. On the other hand, Viora Woltzer greatly valued their family reputation. Everything needed to go according to plan, and that included making sure her son would not be a disappointment to the world. Finley had little choice but to do as she says- his mother was only setting him up for life, Right?

“Alright, I’m ready to leap now.” He stepped away from his mom and began to search his pockets for his leaping crystal and pathfinder. He felt the weight of his mothers hand on his shoulder, his cue to stop.

_Did I mess something up?_

His mom looked at him and smiled, wrinkles forming around her dark blue eyes. Today, half of her curly black hair draped by her shoulders; the other half swept up and made a bun at the top of her head. That style made her look like an extreme authoritative figure. She had her head at a slight tilt as she said “I know you are exited, but remember our agreement. We want a full report of what happens today.” This meant leaving nothing out.

“Yes, mom.” Finley answered. His mother crossed her arms. Anxiety swelled in his chest, but he smiled as his eyebrows came together in determination. He refused to look nervous in front of his parents. His heart was fully set on making them proud of him today, and the thought lifted his head up. He hoped against hope that today would be the day when he would finally manifest an ability.

Speaking of abilities, he didn’t have much time left. His 15th birthday was only half a year away, and after that it would leave him with only a year left until he would be declared talentless. He constantly fantasized about being a phaser like both of his parents, or perhaps a telepath. Heck, he would take even a common ability like a conjurer if it meant escaping the scorned label.

He stepped away from his mother, and strode over to his golden bag with confidence. He looked inside to make sure that he had his schedule and other school equipment. He looked back at the wood table where father was sitting again, this time with a scroll in his hands (the news). “Hey father, aren’t you coming today?” Didn’t he have to teaching to do? His father looked up from what he was reading. “No, I have no prodigies to teach today. I begin tomorrow.” He yawned.

“Oh, Ok.” Finley stood up tall as he took one last look at his parents. A couple of seconds passed in awkward silence, a silence he felt was his responsibility to fill "Uh, yeah... welp..." He grabbed for his pathfinder again, this time without interruption. “See you guys after practice tonight. Love ya!”

He turned away from them, expecting no response. This was normal routine, and Finley convinced himself (for many years) that his parents didn’t need to say that they loved him, because they already should.

He exited through the massive wood front door, and looked out across the forest and greenery. His home was located in the middle of a hundred acre oak forest. Alondure was a grand oak wood mansion with exquisite carvings. In addition, whoever made the house somehow incorporated marble into the framework. It was a beautiful piece of art, and the garden that surrounded the place was filled with countless shrubs and plants of different sizes, colors, and shades of green. The massive garden was a great place to study, and the giant lush grass field was the perfect place to practice with his father, or do his sports workouts. Finley walked to the big sun patch between the trees, and held his pathfinder to the light.

The light beam glittered in front of him, and he felt his heart starting to beat. What did this year have in store for him?

_It WILL be ok._ He thought. _Because I will do great things one day_.

As he stepped into the light and glittered away, he hoped it would become true.

**\---Fourteen Years Ago---**

The moonlight filtered through the dark forest, dappling the ground in a silver light. A figure was silently making their way through the woods, veiled in black clothes and making cautious steps toward a clearing. At the last moment, they crouched behind a tree, scanning the clearing for any sign of movement. A look up revealed the half moon was at its highest point in the sky. The time was drawing near, they should be here any second. He made sure his hood was drawn over his face, masking his appearance.

He didn't know how long he had been crouching there, but his legs started to grow stiff, and his arms burned from the weight of what he was carrying. But he'd suffered worse in the past years, he thought grimly. And he was tired as well- he wanted to get this exchange over with.

The sound of footsteps reached his ears from the clearing. Cautiously, he peeked around the tree trunk. In the moonlight, he was able to make out three elves. They couldn't see him in the shadows of the forest. _Great, on time._ He needed to make this quick- he couldn't draw suspicion to himself from the others.

He cautiously stepped out into the clearing. The other elves looked at him, eyes widened in awareness. They quickly stood close together in a protective formation. The blond haired girl with brown eyes glared daggers at him, while a dark haired boy to her right grabbed a weapon from a hidden pocket. _Seriously, did they really think that I would attack them? Fools._

Using one hand, a forcefield glittered to life.

"You wanted to meet us here. For what?" The blond girl demanded. She glared at him, eyes filled with a hatred that has been festering for many years.

"Foster. Long time no see- but I can still see you need to work on keeping that fear from your voice." The cloaked figure responded smugly. "Maybe someday I'll have the ability to take you seriously."

The dark haired girl to Foster's right cocked her head to the side and took a determined step forward. "Look, wise guy. You're aware that there's four of us and one of you, right? Keep it up, man." 

When the cloaked man spoke again, his voice seemed to be amused. "We all know I can crush you with years of training and power. And children shouldn't talk back to adults, you know." he chuckled. "But hey, I'll give you a free pass. And besides," He pointed his finger at each of them. "I said to bring only one other person if you wished. Can't do math either, huh?"

"You're avoiding the subject. Now hand over the item you wanted to give us." The dark haired boys' teal colored eyes flashed in the moonlight, his face set in a stern expression. He meant business, and his grip on the weapon hadn't faltered.

On the cloaked mans' arm, a logo with a white eye stood out from the darkness, reminding the other three what he was capable of doing. That logo he wore represented sacrifice, death, fire, freedom, power, and fear. They had some serious guts to tell him how things were going to go.


	2. Suspicious

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sophie gets shooketh- and I did my best to capture the personalities of our older main characters.

**-CHAPTER TWO-**

Cheers rang out across the stadium as Finley Woltzer scored another goal. Although the noise was muffled by glass, it was enough to piqe the interest of a certain brown eyed elf. 

Sophie Foster gazed down onto the lush green field from her place in a private glass viewing box. Her brown eyes flicked from player to player, getting lost in a sea of aquamarine jerseys. 

There. 

He was being hoisted on the shoulders of his teammates, a triumphant grin radiating his young, proud face. 

"Well, that was sure exiting! Brilliant move at the end there, with the telekinesis." Dex noted as he sat forward in his seat next to Sophie. 

"Remember what we're here for. I don't mean to be a downer, but we should report back to the council sooner than later." 

"We will have plenty of time, Stina." Wylie said. "What is our next course of action, Sophie?" 

Sophie was silent for a while. She had many things on her mind, but the main concern was the curly haired boy on the playing field. 

Because of a new rise in activity reports from the Neverseen, the legendary Team Valiant was being assigned to do a check on this boy's progress. They were to attend every tackle bramble game, much to the distaste of Lady Stina. "Crowds are dangerous. It is very easy for something to happen to Woltzer in the chaos of a game, so perform your duties with precision," Councillor Bronte had told her with a grim expression.

And now here they sit in the stands, and Sophie could tell that her teammates would rather be doing something else. But Sophie couldn't bear the thought of anything happening to this boy. That is what drove her to keep her eyes determinedly glued to the action.

"Okay everyone! I think that is the end of things," Biana cheerfully announced. She stood up from her seat. "Another game, another successful assignment for today." She clapped her hands together and proceeded to walk towards the exit, her glittery dress seeming to shift colors.

Wylie silently followed her to the exit in silent agreement. Stina let out an exhausted grunt as she strutted behind him.

"Alright, Foss Boss, time to hit the light beam- wait, aren't ya comin'?" Dex looked confused as he saw Sophie make no move to stand up.

"Please, continue without me. I'll see you tommorow." Came the blunt reply. Sophie was still gazing intently down below. The stadium was gradually clearing out, families eager to return home before sunset.

Dex seemed to get the hint. "Okay, ma'am. I'll be at my house, if you wanna stop by for a drink or two." He left the room, his boots making clicking sounds on the floor.

When Sophie heard his footsteps fade away, she started to scan the seats for Mr. Woltze- no, Finley's- parents. Their names were Shavrow and Viora, right? But she didn't see anyone that matched their description.

Sophie furrowed her brow's more. _Had they not come?_ She wondered. She looked down upon the boy again.

Finley was grabbing his bags, and appearing to say farewell to Lady Alexine, his Tackle Bramble coach. After a short conversation, Finley walked to a clear spot and leaped away.

_How curious,_ She wondered. Parents in the elvin world almost always came to their children's games, but perhaps they were busy this evening. After all, Finley's parents DID hold important positions. Sophie's work was done. She stood up, stretched, and made her way to the door after her friends. They would have already left by now, but she was tempted to take up her counsin's offer and stop by his place...

She emerged outside, the sun's last rays starting to sink behind the horizon. From her viewpoint on the grassy hill, she could oversee the entire stadium, beautiful wooded forest, and the looming, stunning presence of Foxfire Academy.

It was then and there that Sophie decided she should take a walk. She deserved it- perhaps it would help her to sleep tonight. She made her way down to the stadium, navigating between the rows of benches and finally onto the field. She passed by where Finley's team sat during breaks in the game. Looking over at the benches, amusedly, she wondered how the children would have reacted if they found out that the "Legendary Team Valiant" was secretly watching their games.

Sophie was an adult now, and had serious "grown up responsibilities" as her parents said. But she looked forward to doing this assignment. It was a nice break compared to the alternative of hunting down an organization of arsonists and murderers.

And seeing the kids play the game and have fun made Sophie happy deep down. This is what the Black Swan was working for, a safe and happy future for the sake of all species.

Something blue caught her eye- a sleeve of clothing was peeking out from underneath the bench.

_Someone left their jacket here,_ Sophie observed. She picked it up. The back of the jacket had Finley's last name displayed in fancy gold letters.

_Ah, so it's his._

She looked around the stadium, which was now eerily silent and empty. She decided that she would look for one of the Foxfire staff, so they could safely return it to its owner.

She started to fold it neatly on her knee, and as she did so, a piece of folded paper fluttered to the ground.

It seemed to come put of the pocket. Sophie bent down to pick it up, and began to put it back in the jacket pocket.

But the name on the envelope stopped her.

_"To Gannon"_

"What the-"

Sophie's exhaustion was completely gone. Fear, panic, and dread made her feel cold. Her eyes were wide open, alarmed by the sight of it. _They're after him... holy gods of the humans...._ (edited)

She had to warn the other's. Now.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for bearing with me- I finally found the motivation to write again :)
> 
> Again, constructive criticism, and I will fix any and all errors.

**Author's Note:**

> Hi- this is my first ever work. I'm still trying to get a feel for how this site functions. My goal is just to practice my writing so that someday I can make an original story.
> 
> Please be nice in the comments, and give me constructive criticism. Don't be mean or I will find you, and steal your mallowmelt >:D. Feel free to tell me what you think of it so far- I need motivation for this sort of thing. Tell me of any errors and I'll fix 'em.
> 
> In this universe, Keefe does not gain that ability from Gisela and he is like he always was. The Neverseen have not made many attacks, and have remained somewhat dormant for a few years.
> 
> Yes, I plan on finishing this.


End file.
